Groundnut drying systems in Senegal
What the crop demands, what the country imposes, and what that means for capacity.
The groundnut basin is the historical core of the Senegalese rural economy, and aflatoxin is its persistent commercial problem — it has repeatedly limited access to European markets and forced the crop toward oil-crushing rather than confectionery, which is where the money is.
The situation in Senegal
The closest West African coast to Europe, with Dakar four days’ sailing from Algeciras and a direct air-freight route that other producers in the region do not have. Its agricultural calendar is also the odd one out: the rains arrive late and the mango season runs through the northern summer, when Sahelian supply has finished. That timing is worth more than any processing efficiency.
Growing regions. the Niayes coastal strip, Casamance in the south, Saint-Louis and the river valley
What groundnut drying demands
Groundnut is an aflatoxin problem wearing a crop’s clothing. Aspergillus establishes in the pod while the nut sits above 10 % moisture, and once the toxin is present nothing downstream removes it. Getting to 7–8 % quickly, and evenly, is the entire quality control system.
Harvest calendar
October to December, harvested at the end of the rains. Nuts lifted into humid conditions and stacked in field windrows are exactly the situation Aspergillus needs.
The working campaign window as the trade runs it. It shifts a fortnight either way with the rains.
Process parameters
| Parameter | Value |
|---|---|
| Drying temperature | 40–45 °C |
| Final moisture | 7–8 % |
| Yield (fresh : dried) | 1.3 : 1 |
| Cycle time | 6–12 h |
Sizing starting points from ordinary processing practice, not a validated recipe for your product. Confirm against your own intake and your buyer’s specification.
Worked sizing example
For a unit taking 15 tonnes of fresh product a day, at a yield of 1.3 : 1:
Illustrative figures calculated from the yield and campaign window above. They size a conversation; they do not describe any existing installation.
Fuel available in Senegal
The groundnut basin supplies a large volume of very light groundnut shell: briquetting is not optional but a precondition. Rice husk in the river valley.
- Base load. Groundnut shell · Rice husk · Cashew shell
- Supplement. Cotton stalk · Corn cob · Sawdust
See all 27 fuels and their properties
Market and buyer requirements
Domestic and export crushing for oil, plus a confectionery and food-grade export market that pays considerably more and is gated on aflatoxin testing.
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The systems that hold this profile
Other crops in Senegal
Fish · Mango · Onion · Hibiscus · Raw cashew nut
Frequently asked questions
How does drying control aflatoxin in groundnut?
By closing the window in which Aspergillus can establish. The mould grows while the nut sits above about 10 % moisture; getting to 7–8 % quickly and evenly, on a 6 to 12 hour cycle at 40–45 °C, is the entire control — nothing downstream removes the toxin once formed.
Why does aflatoxin matter more than yield here?
Because it decides which market the crop can enter. Food and confectionery grades pay considerably more than oil crushing and are gated on aflatoxin testing, so the drying step rather than the harvest determines the price. Getting to 7–8 % moisture quickly is what keeps the higher market open.
What does 15 t/day of groundnut produce?
Around 11.5 tonnes a day of conditioned nut at roughly 1.3 : 1, on a 6 to 12 hour cycle at 40–45 °C. Because the ratio is low and the cycle short, groundnut is a high-throughput crop: the chamber is sized for the volume passing through it rather than for water removed.
Size a unit in Senegal
Tell us your daily fresh volume and target output, and we will size the chambers, the burner and the fuel available around your site.
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